Childhood and Youth (MSc)

Why study this course

This programme is aimed at practitioners, policy makers and postgraduates who want to develop their knowledge of childhood and youth, and learn approaches to conducting research with these groups. You will build a solid foundation from which to critically evaluate how social structures, institutions, media, policies and practices impact upon children and young people.

people

Take a sociological approach

Study childhood and youth in society, and the role of policies and practices in impacting young lives.

people

Practical research skills

Learn methodological techniques and approaches to research with children and young people.

Dissertation includes a small-scale independent piece of research on a topic of your interest.

Childhood and Youth is a growing field of inquiry across the social sciences. This MSc offers an opportunity to study in one of the UK's leading centres for childhood and youth based research.

This course is aimed at practitioners, policy makers and postgraduate students who want to develop their knowledge of childhood and youth and consider what it means to conduct research with children and young people at an advanced level.

It offers the opportunity to examine leading theories, methodologies and research evidence in order to understand the relationship between the conceptualisation of childhood, methodological approaches to researching with children and young people and the social impact of childhood policies and practices in a variety of social and cultural contexts and across the young life course.

Admissions criteria

Applicants should normally hold, or be close to completing a first or second-class undergraduate degree in a social sciences or humanities subject. However, other applicants will be considered if they can demonstrate, through recent and relevant experience, that they have the ability to undertake the course.

Applicants whose first language is not English are required to obtain a minimum overall IELTS score of 6.5 with a minimum of 6.5 in writing and at least 5.5 in all other categories.

Applications should be made via the Online Applications Service. Please make sure that you explain clearly in your personal statement why you are interested in applying to this MSc in Childhood and Youth, a course that adopts a sociological approach to childhood and youth, including a focus on research, methods and policy.

In your statement, you should refer explicitly to the particular aspects of this course and its modules that most interest you, and what topics or themes you are hoping to learn more about in taking it. If this information is not included, this may cause delays in processing your application, and we may contact you with a request for further information.

The deadline for applications from international students for this course is 1st August. The deadline for applications from home students for this course is 1st September.

Course structure

This is a one-year full-time programme.

A 20-credit module comprises 200 hours of study, including about 30 hours of contact time, and the MSc as a whole, 1800 hours of study.

The MSc in Childhood and Youth comprises up to three 20-credit specialist modules in childhood and youth, two 30-credit modules in social science theory and research methods, and one 60-credit supervised dissertation on a childhood and youth topic of your choice.

The modules shown are an example of the typical curriculum and will be reviewed prior to the 2020/21 academic year. The final modules will be published by September 2020.

We currently offer specialist childhood and youth 20-credit modules on a range of topics, although these may change from year to year.

In addition to these specialist modules, you will also be required to take two 30-credit modules in social science theory and research methods.

Dissertation

Finally, you will be asked to produce a 60-credit, 20,000 word dissertation on a childhood and youth topic of your choice.

This dissertation involves a small scale independent piece of research, and enables you to develop your interests in a substantive area related to the programme, and to put into practice the knowledge and skills developed through participation in the taught modules.

You will be allocated a personal dissertation supervisor to assist in planning, conducting and writing up the research project.

The University is committed to providing a wide range of module options where possible, but please be aware that whilst every effort is made to offer choice this may be limited in certain circumstances. This is due to the fact that some modules have limited numbers of places available, which are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, while others have minimum student numbers required before they will run, to ensure that an appropriate quality of education can be delivered; some modules require students to have already taken particular subjects, and others are core or required on the programme you are taking. Modules may also be limited due to timetable clashes, and although the University works to minimise disruption to choice, we advise you to seek advice from the relevant School on the module choices available.

Learning and assessment

How will I be taught?

Our teaching is research-informed and led by researchers and scholars in one of the foremost childhood and youth studies research groups in the UK. The programme benefits from being located in an inter-disciplinary environment so that in parts of the course, you will come into contact with staff and students from other subject areas and, in other parts of the course, with staff and students in the same substantive area.

Modules employ a diverse range of teaching including lectures, seminars, group and individual tutorials, and independent guided study. All modules within the programme make use of Cardiff University’s Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Learning Central, on which you will find course materials, links to related materials and information on assessment.

You will be expected to attend lectures, seminars and tutorials as set out in the timetable for MSc students. These sometimes sit outside the regular pattern of university attendance and may include day, evening and weekend study and on occasion may fall outside the standard semester dates. You will also be expected to undertake independent study in preparation for lectures, seminars and assessments.

How will I be assessed?

Modules are assessed by a combination of essays, reports, reviews and presentations.

How will I be supported?

You will be allocated a personal tutor and a nominated supervisor when undertaking your dissertation. Regular contact will be maintained across the duration of the course.

You will also have access to a programme convenor to offer additional subject-specific support.

Feedback

You will have the opportunity to develop and practice advanced oral and written communication through formative tasks such as presentation of preparatory reading, group problem-based learning tasks, and group presentations. Feedback is therefore provided on an ongoing basis, as well as more formally for summative assessments.

What skills will I practise and develop?

On successfully completing the MSc in Childhood and Youth, you will have significantly enhanced your ability to:

Demonstrate a critical understanding of core theoretical perspectives through which childhood and youth is currently understood and defined, within an interdisciplinary context.

Describe, understand and explain key issues and debates in contemporary society affecting children and young people.

Critically reflect upon and analyse legislation, policy and practice relating to children and young people.

Demonstrate knowledge of methodological and ethical considerations in undertaking research with children and young people, including an in-depth understanding of child-centred research.

Apply knowledge and skills and show originality in thinking by tackling both familiar and unfamiliar problems.

As appropriate, evaluate, synthesise and interpret data, and be able to collect, evaluate, synthesise and interpret data in the form of a project or dissertation.

Demonstrate high level academic and personal skills applicable to own research or scholarship, such as writing, oral presentations, problem solving and group work, and the use and application of information technologies in, for example, literature searches, research methods, and data analysis and presentation.

Tuition fees

UK and EU students (2020/21)

Financial support may be available to individuals who meet certain criteria. For more information visit our funding section. Please note that these sources of financial support are limited and therefore not everyone who meets the criteria are guaranteed to receive the support.

EU students entering in 2020/21 will pay the same tuition fee as UK students for the duration of their course. Please be aware that fees may increase annually in line with inflation. No decisions regarding fees and loans for EU students starting in 2020/21 have been made yet. These will be determined as part of the UK's discussions on its membership of the EU and we will provide further details as soon as we can.

Students from outside the EU (2020/21)

Financial support may be available to individuals who meet certain criteria. For more information visit our funding section. Please note that these sources of financial support are limited and therefore not everyone who meets the criteria are guaranteed to receive the support.

Additional costs

Will I need any specific equipment to study this course/programme?

No specific equipment required.

Career prospects

Graduates from this programme will have a theoretical, methodological and substantive foundation from which they can critically evaluate how contemporary social structures, institutions, media, policies and practices impact upon children and young people's everyday lives.

This makes the programme suitable if you wish to work in child and youth-focused research, policy and advocacy roles in the private, public and voluntary sector, both nationally and internationally. It also provides a good foundation for those wishing to go on to further training in a variety of professional fields involving work with children and young people, such as education, health and social care, family policy, youth work, justice, international development and charity work.